Abandoned WordPress Plugins With Active User Bases: 390 Potential Acquisition Targets

Most Installed: Top 10

1. 01

   Limit Login Attempts

   1,059d inactive

   Automattic · 300K active installs · ★ 4.6

   Limit Login Attempts does one thing: it caps the number of failed login attempts a WordPress site will accept before locking out the requesting IP address. That single function has earned it 300,000 active installs, largely because brute-force credential stuffing against wp-login.php remains one of the most common attack vectors against WordPress sites of any size. Sites depending on this plugin today are using it as their primary or only throttle against automated password attacks. If it stops working correctly, those sites lose rate-limiting entirely, meaning a botnet can cycle through credential lists without interruption until it finds a match or overwhelms the server.

   Limit Login Attempts has gone 1,059 days without a code update. For a plugin that sits directly in the authentication layer, that gap is a serious concern. The most likely exploitable surface in a plugin of this type is authentication bypass, where flawed IP detection logic, such as over-reliance on the X-Forwarded-For header, lets an attacker spoof their address and reset their own lockout counter indefinitely. A confirmed CVE in Limit Login Attempts along those lines would hand any attacker a clean path to unlimited login attempts against every one of those 300,000 installations, with no throttle in place.

   The acquisition case for Limit Login Attempts is real, though not straightforward. The 300,000 install base is substantial, but Wordfence and Loginizer both offer comparable or superior login protection and receive regular updates. Limit Login Attempts would need active development immediately upon acquisition to be competitive, not just maintained. Automattic's apparent disengagement from the plugin suggests the handoff process may be uncomplicated. Interested developers typically contact the author via the WordPress.org plugin support forum.

2. 02

   PHP Compatibility Checker

   805d inactive

   WP Engine · 200K active installs · ★ 2.7

   PHP Compatibility Checker scans a WordPress site's installed plugins, themes, and code against a target PHP version, identifying functions and syntax that will break under that version. WP Engine built it to help site owners safely migrate from older PHP versions, and that specific use case explains the 200,000 active install count. Server hosts were deprecating PHP 5.6 and 7.x in waves, and site owners needed a fast diagnostic before upgrading. Those 200,000 sites are depending on PHP Compatibility Checker to tell them whether a PHP upgrade is safe. If the plugin produces false negatives due to an unmaintained scanning library, a site owner upgrades PHP, and core functionality silently breaks with no prior warning.

   PHP Compatibility Checker has gone 805 days without a code update. Plugins that scan files and parse code on the server side carry a specific risk: the file traversal attack surface. If a future CVE exposed insufficient input sanitization in the plugin's scan path handling, an attacker with subscriber-level access could redirect the scanner toward arbitrary directories, reading sensitive files outside the intended scope. Stored XSS in the scan results output is a secondary concern, since an attacker could inject a payload through a vulnerable dependency name that then executes in the admin panel for any administrator who views the report.

   PHP Compatibility Checker is worth acquiring. The 200,000 install base is large, the category is genuinely niche, and no well-maintained direct competitor with equivalent scan depth exists on WordPress.org. WP Engine shows no sign of reviving the plugin internally. A developer who can maintain the underlying PHPCompatibility library and keep the scanner current through PHP 8.x iterations would own a category with defensible retention. Interested developers typically contact the author via the WordPress.org plugin support forum.

3. 03

   Layout Grid Block

   961d inactive

   Automattic · 200K active installs · ★ 4.7

   Layout Grid Block gives editors a column-based layout system inside the WordPress block editor, letting them divide page sections into responsive grids without writing CSS. That capability attracted 200,000 active installs from site owners building landing pages, portfolio layouts, and editorial templates where column control matters. Those sites depend on the plugin to render their core page structure correctly. If Layout Grid Block stops working after a WordPress core update or a PHP version bump, column containers collapse, content stacks incorrectly, and pages that were designed around precise grid ratios become visually broken with no simple fallback.

   Layout Grid Block has gone 961 days without a code update. Plugins in this category typically expose stored XSS vectors because they accept user-controlled attributes inside block markup and write that data back to the post content. A disclosed CVE here would most likely allow a contributor-level user to inject a persistent script into a page's grid block attributes. When that page loads in an administrator's browser, the script executes with full admin privileges, opening a direct path to credential theft or malicious plugin installation. REST API endpoints that Layout Grid Block registers for block validation are a secondary concern if those endpoints lack proper capability checks.

   Layout Grid Block is worth acquiring. 200,000 installs is a substantial base, and the category is specific enough that no single well-maintained competitor has clearly displaced it on WordPress.org. Automattic's apparent inactivity on this plugin since July 11, 2023 suggests it is no longer a priority for them internally. Developers interested in acquiring it should contact the author through the WordPress.org plugin support forum.

4. 04

   WP Downgrade

   1,025d inactive

   Reisetiger · 100K active installs · ★ 4.8

   WP Downgrade | Specific Core Version does exactly what its name says: it lets site administrators install a specific older version of WordPress core rather than the current release. That sounds like an edge case, but 100,000 active installs tell a different story. Hosting agencies use it to freeze client sites on tested versions before scheduled maintenance windows. Developers use it to reproduce version-specific bugs. Theme and plugin shops use it to QA against older core releases before pushing updates to their own customers. If WP Downgrade stops working or behaves unexpectedly, those sites either accept an unintended core update or get stranded without a reliable rollback path, leaving administrators to manually replace core files, which most cannot do safely.

   WP Downgrade | Specific Core Version has gone 1,025 days without a code update, and that gap is a real concern for a plugin that communicates with the WordPress.org download API to fetch and install core packages. The most plausible attack surface here is not authentication bypass or stored XSS but rather the download and verification step itself. If the plugin does not strictly validate the integrity of the package it fetches, a man-in-the-middle or a compromised mirror could deliver a modified core archive. A disclosed CVE in that specific area would allow an attacker to replace WordPress core files across any site running the plugin during a downgrade operation.

   WP Downgrade | Specific Core Version is worth acquiring. The 100,000 install base is sticky because the use case is operational rather than cosmetic, meaning administrators do not swap these tools casually. No well-maintained competitor with comparable install numbers exists on WordPress.org today. The author's inactivity over 1,025 days suggests either disengagement or capacity constraints, not active hostility to a sale. Developers interested in acquiring the plugin should contact Reisetiger directly through the WP Downgrade | Specific Core Version support forum on WordPress.org, which remains the standard first step for these conversations.

5. 05

   Easy Google Fonts

   1,679d inactive

   Sunny Johal · 100K active installs · ★ 4.6

   Easy Google Fonts gives WordPress site owners a settings-based interface for applying Google Fonts to any theme element without touching code. That accessibility explains the 100,000 active installs, most of which belong to small business sites and portfolio themes whose designers selected typefaces once and never thought about it again. Today those sites depend on Easy Google Fonts to inject the correct font-family declarations through the WordPress Customizer. If the plugin breaks or is removed, typography reverts to browser defaults, often collapsing carefully constructed visual hierarchies. If it is exploited, an attacker with access to the font settings interface could manipulate how style output is written to the page.

   Easy Google Fonts has gone 1,679 days without a code update, and that gap is a real concern for a plugin that writes user-controlled values into CSS output. The specific vector worth watching here is stored XSS. The plugin takes font names and CSS selector inputs from the Customizer and renders them on the front end. If input sanitization or output escaping has any gap, a low-privileged user with Customizer access, such as a site editor or shop manager, could inject a script payload that executes for every visitor. A disclosed CVE along those lines would hand an attacker a persistent, sitewide execution point without needing administrator credentials.

   Easy Google Fonts is worth acquiring. The 100,000 install base is sticky because typography configuration is set-and-forget, meaning users rarely leave voluntarily. The category is genuinely narrow, and no well-maintained competitor on WordPress.org holds comparable adoption at the same zero-cost tier. Sunny Johal's silence since July 2021 suggests the plugin is unattended rather than actively defended. Developers interested in acquiring Easy Google Fonts can typically reach the author through the plugin's support forum on WordPress.org.

6. 06

   AddQuicktag

   1,743d inactive

   Frank Bueltge · 100K active installs · ★ 4.7

   AddQuicktag gives editors and administrators the ability to define custom buttons for both the Classic Editor toolbar and the HTML quicktag bar, inserting pre-written code snippets, shortcodes, or HTML wrappers with a single click. That specific workflow, repeated dozens of times per day on content-heavy sites, is why 100,000 active installs have accumulated around a plugin that never received serious marketing. Sites depending on AddQuicktag today are typically those running the Classic Editor, managing structured content like recipes, legal disclaimers, or affiliate disclosure blocks, and relying on those buttons to insert consistent markup. If AddQuicktag stops working after a WordPress core update, editors lose their custom buttons silently, and the markup those buttons were inserting either disappears from new content or gets entered inconsistently by hand.

   AddQuicktag has gone 1,743 days without a code update, which is a long exposure window for a plugin that stores user-defined HTML and renders it inside the editor interface. The most plausible attack vector here is stored cross-site scripting. A user with contributor-level access, or any role permitted to modify quicktag settings, could inject malicious script into a saved button definition. When an administrator opens the editor, that script executes in their session, potentially enabling privilege escalation or session hijacking without any further interaction required from the attacker.

   AddQuicktag is worth acquiring. The 100,000 install base is large and sticky, the Classic Editor audience is not shrinking as fast as block editor advocates suggest, and no well-maintained competitor on WordPress.org occupies this exact niche with comparable adoption. The author, Frank Bueltge, has shown no update activity since May 20, 2021, which makes a sale plausible. Developers interested in acquiring AddQuicktag typically reach out through the WordPress.org plugin support forum.

7. 07

   Fixed Widget and Sticky Elements for WordPress

   1,064d inactive

   monetizemore · 90K active installs · ★ 4.7

   Fixed Widget and Sticky Elements for WordPress solves one specific, high-value problem: it lets site owners pin widgets, ad units, and sidebar elements so they follow the user as they scroll. That behavior is what gives ad placements like AdSense sidebar units their revenue-generating position on the page, and it is why the plugin's author, monetizemore, a company built around ad revenue optimization, created it in the first place. Across 90,000 active installs, the plugin is almost certainly holding sticky ad containers in place on publisher sites. If it breaks or gets compromised, those ad units either stop rendering in position or begin behaving unpredictably, which directly reduces RPM for anyone running display advertising.

   Fixed Widget and Sticky Elements for WordPress has not received a code update in 1,064 days. Plugins that manipulate the widget API and interact with the WordPress customizer tend to expose stored XSS vectors, because user-supplied configuration values, like CSS selectors and offset pixel values entered in the sticky options panel, can be written to the database and echoed back unsanitized. A stored XSS vulnerability in this plugin would allow an attacker with contributor-level access or above to inject persistent scripts into the admin panel, steal session cookies, or redirect authenticated users, all without triggering obvious front-end warnings.

   Fixed Widget and Sticky Elements for WordPress is worth acquiring. 90,000 installs in a narrow but commercially durable category is a strong foundation, and the ad-publisher audience that uses it tends to keep plugins active as long as they work. No well-maintained direct equivalent currently dominates WordPress.org with comparable adoption. MonetizeMore appears to have moved its focus away from free plugin maintenance entirely. Developers interested in acquiring this plugin typically contact the author via the WordPress.org plugin support forum.

8. 08

   PHP Code Widget

   1,429d inactive

   Samuel Wood (Otto) · 90K active installs · ★ 4.7

   PHP Code Widget does exactly what its name says: it lets site owners drop raw PHP into any WordPress widget area and execute it. That single capability explains the 90,000 active install count. Developers and power users reach for it when a theme's widget zones need dynamic output, such as conditional greetings, live pricing pulled from a database query, or session-aware content, and no cleaner solution exists in their stack. If PHP Code Widget stops working today, every widget area relying on it renders either blank or as a broken PHP string exposed in plain text. If it gets exploited, the attacker inherits whatever PHP can do on that server, which on a shared host can mean reading configuration files, extracting database credentials, or writing files to the document root.

   At 1,429 days without an update, PHP Code Widget is a static target against a moving threat environment. The specific exposure here is stored cross-site scripting combined with privilege escalation. Because the plugin saves arbitrary PHP to the database and renders it on the front end, a contributor-level or above user who can edit widgets can inject persistent malicious code that executes for every visitor. If a CVE were disclosed today, an attacker with a low-privilege account would have a credible path to server-level code execution, not just cookie theft.

   Acquisition is worth serious consideration. The 90,000 install base is sticky because users who have already embedded PHP logic into widgets rarely migrate voluntarily. The category is narrow enough that a competent buyer could own it outright, and no well-maintained equivalent exists on WordPress.org with comparable adoption. The author, Samuel Wood, has a long history at Automattic, which means the codebase has a credible foundation to build from, but it also means he is unlikely to return to active maintenance on a small utility plugin. The answer is yes, acquire it. Developers interested in discussing a handover typically reach Samuel Wood through the plugin's support forum on WordPress.org.

9. 09

   Invisible reCaptcha for WordPress

   2,151d inactive

   MihChe · 90K active installs · ★ 4.3

   Invisible reCaptcha for WordPress integrates Google's invisible reCAPTCHA v2 into WordPress login pages, registration forms, password resets, WooCommerce checkout flows, and Contact Form 7 submissions, all without requiring users to solve a visible challenge. That zero-friction approach is exactly why it accumulated 90,000 active installs. Site owners running WooCommerce stores depend on it to block credential-stuffing attacks at checkout and to prevent fake account creation that inflates their user tables and triggers fraudulent orders. On Contact Form 7 installations, it is the only thing standing between the site and automated spam submission floods. If the plugin stops working tomorrow, because Google deprecates an API parameter or because a WordPress core update breaks the hook, those forms either fail to load entirely or open wide to bot traffic.

   Invisible reCaptcha for WordPress has not received a code update in 2,151 days. Plugins in this category carry a specific and well-documented risk profile around third-party API key handling. The plugin stores Google site keys and secret keys in the WordPress options table, and any vulnerability that allows unauthorized read access to that table, stored XSS that exfiltrates option data via an authenticated session, or a REST API endpoint that leaks option values without a capability check, would hand an attacker the site's reCAPTCHA credentials. A disclosed CVE here would let bad actors bypass the captcha entirely by spoofing valid verification responses using the stolen secret key, effectively removing all bot protection across every integrated form.

   Yes, Invisible reCaptcha for WordPress is worth acquiring. The 90,000 install base is substantial, the category has genuine commercial value because spam protection is a persistent need rather than a trend-driven one, and the most actively maintained competitor in the space, WP Armour, targets a different mechanism entirely rather than the invisible reCAPTCHA implementation these sites specifically chose. The author, MihChe, has shown no plugin activity since April 2020, which makes a negotiated acquisition realistic at a modest price. Interested developers should contact the author directly through the WordPress.org plugin support forum.

10. 10

    Facebook Chat Plugin

    1,332d inactive

    Facebook · 90K active installs · ★ 3.5

    Facebook Chat Plugin – Live Chat Plugin for WordPress embeds a Messenger chat widget directly into WordPress sites, letting visitors open a real-time conversation with a Facebook Page inbox without leaving the site. The appeal was obvious when it launched: zero cost, a familiar interface for billions of Messenger users, and a one-field setup that required only a Facebook Page ID. Those 90,000 active installs are largely small business sites, ecommerce stores, and service providers that route customer inquiries through Messenger rather than a dedicated helpdesk. If the plugin breaks or gets pulled, those sites lose their primary customer contact channel silently, with no error message visible to the owner, only a blank space where the chat widget used to appear.

    The Facebook Chat Plugin – Live Chat Plugin for WordPress has gone 1,332 days without an update, and that gap carries real risk in a plugin that handles third-party API communication and renders user-initiated interface elements. The most relevant attack vectors here are stored cross-site scripting and third-party API key mishandling. A stored XSS vulnerability in the admin settings panel could allow an attacker with low-privilege access to inject a payload that executes in the browser of any administrator who visits that settings page, potentially leading to session hijacking and full site takeover. Weak handling of the Facebook API token could expose page-level credentials to unauthorized reads.

    Facebook Chat Plugin – Live Chat Plugin for WordPress is not a strong acquisition target. The dependency on a Facebook Page ID and Meta's own Messenger infrastructure means any maintainer is permanently subordinate to Meta's API decisions, and Meta has a documented history of breaking or deprecating Messenger integrations without notice. A well-maintained alternative, Tidio, exists outside WordPress.org but dominates the live chat category, and the 3.5 out of 5 rating suggests the existing user base is already lukewarm on this specific implementation.